Provost's Outstanding Graduate Student Teacher Award

About the Award

The Outstanding Graduate Student Teacher award recognizes graduate students who show outstanding promise as teachers who have taught for at least one academic term. It is awarded annually to a novice or experienced graduate student teacher with a strong commitment to reflecting, documenting, and improving their teaching skills.

Value: The recipient will receive an award of $1,000, paid directly to the student.

One award will be made annually and the recipient will be recognized at a Celebration of Teaching hosted by the Gwenna Moss Centre for Teaching and Learning.

Criteria

Evidence of outstanding teaching, including laboratory teaching if applicable, and commitment to a reflective teaching practice

excellent overall teaching/mentorship qualities as determined by students, peers, and faculty or instructors

evidence of commitment to teaching and learning, and energy devoted to teaching

an understanding what he/she is doing in his/her teaching practice, why it is working, and how it affects student learning

evidence of ongoing professional development in teaching

Nomination Process

Nominators

Eligibility

Graduate students in good academic standing who are currently teaching or assisting with teaching duties are eligible for the award. This includes graduate students who, over the course of at least one academic term, are

functioning as part-time sessionals,

assisting instructors in delivering a lab or tutorial,

coordinating multiple lab sections or tutorials including the mentorship and development of teaching skills in their peers or junior colleagues

grading assignments or exams, or

assisting with the design or development of an innovative strategy, course, or program of study related to teaching/learning.

Nominations may be made during the term in which the graduate student is teaching or within one year of when the graduate student has completed their term as a teaching assistant.

Expectations

Nominations must provide evidence of excellent overall teaching quality, a sense of the candidate's dedication to reflecting, documenting, and improving their teaching skills, and a description of why the candidate has outstanding promise as a teacher.

Candidates are encouraged to document previous teaching experiences in addition to their current teaching responsibilities in order to demonstrate ongoing development and growth in their teaching practice.

Nominations

Nominations and supporting materials are limited to 15 pages and must be submitted in the form of a teaching portfolio that demonstrates the candidate’s accomplishments as well as their overall growth and development as a teacher. The page limit does not include the cover page or the table of contents.

Teaching portfolios must include the following items:

a nomination letter (explaining how and why the candidate’s teaching/mentorship qualities are related to his/her teaching philosophy and why the candidate has outstanding promise as a teacher; limited to one page),

a teaching philosophy statement (outlining the candidate’s beliefs about teaching and learning, and the type of learning environment he/she strives to create),

a description of courses, labs, or tutorials taught, including teaching/grading responsibilities, style and format of the course, lab, or tutorial, number of students taught, and evidence of multiple strategies that demonstrate effective classroom teaching and/or grading practices, OR a description of teaching innovation with respect to mentorship-related activities and/or project/course work related to teaching and learning (evidence may include sample syllabi, activities, lesson plans, tests, assignments, teaching materials developed, etc),

a reflective narrative demonstrating an understanding what the candidate is doing in his/her teaching practice, why it is working, and how it affects student learning,

evidence of ongoing professional development in teaching, and

student and/or peer evaluation results including a personal response from the candidate addressing the feedback received.

Selection Committee

Nominations, shall be forwarded to the Gwenna Moss Centre. A selection committee composed of the Director of the GMCTL, past Provost's teaching award recipients, and a graduate student representative will review nominations and select a recipient.

Submission

Nomination Deadlines: Nominations must be submitted by February 15 each year.